“It’s better to fail in originality than to
succeed in imitation.”
A while back, I signed up for a 12-month program with a big name in the coaching world, whose sales page made me feel woefully behind for not doing it sooner.
Four months in, I knew it was a HUGE mistake.
The problem was obvious: most of my time was spent trying to bend our process to fit theirs. A framework designed by (and for) a completely different type of business.
But I kept going anyway.
Partly because of the sunk-cost and misguided hope that next month would be better. Also … I was just too embarrassed to quit.
***
I was hell-bent on walking away with a client attraction system I could set on autopilot. That’s what the program promised.
Here’s the lesson I got instead:
Other people’s shortcuts and secrets are NOT one-size-fits-all.
[ Still valuable. Exponentially more painful to my ego and wallet. ]
The systems in that coaching program were designed for how they think, their ideal clients, and the specific problem they solved for themselves.
What worked for their business would never work for ours, no matter how well I followed the steps.
Kind of like when a prospect asks us to create “a website just like [ influencer brand of the month ].”
My answer:
We won’t. And even more to the point … We shouldn’t.
Why?
Because that website was designed for their audience, brand, message, and offer. And it would look like a cheap, ill-fitting costume on any other business.
You might not think you’re wearing one. But your prospects sure notice.
***
When your branding, messaging, and/or website are a carbon-copy of someone else (or clearly an AI-generated costume), your bank account feels it.
Qualified referrals disappear without saying a word. And the conversations you do have become a bartering contest.
It’s a big part of what I'm sharing Wednesday:
Filtered Out: Three Brand Signals Costing You Clients
Wednesday, August 19 @ 3:00 PM ET
In just 30 minutes, you’ll learn how to view your own homepage the way a skeptical prospect does, and quickly tell whether it fits — or it doesn’t.
***
Make it a great week! 🙌
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